HD Hyundai Heavy invests W1tr in engines, SMRs to meet AI power demand

HD Hyundai Heavy will invest 1 trillion won ($747 million) in facilities for its land-based power generation engine and small modular reactor, or SMR, projects.

The company said Thursday it will invest a total of 1.07 trillion won to build a new engine production base and a dedicated factory for manufacturing SMR components.

Of that, 833.6 billion won will go toward building a new 3GW production base for its HiMSEN engines in Onsan-eup, Ulju-gun, Ulsan. The HiMSEN engine is a four-stroke, medium-speed engine developed using the company's own technology.

The new production base will be built on a 214,500-square-meter site and will house an engine assembly and test-run plant, a crankshaft processing plant, and an engine block casting plant. Ground-breaking is set for the first quarter of next year, with the facility expected to be completed in May 2028 before moving into full operation.

The company's existing Ulsan plant will focus on producing HiMSEN engines for ships. The new factory and HD Hyundai Engine in Yeongam, South Jeolla Province, will produce land-based power generation HiMSEN engines. Once the new factory is completed, combined production capacity for all HiMSEN engines — both for ships and land-based power generation — will expand from the current 3GW. It is expected to reach 7.2GW by 2030.

The company will also invest 238.6 billion won to build a dedicated factory for manufacturing SMR core components. SMRs are drawing attention as a next-generation energy source for the AI era. The factory will be built on a site within HD Hyundai Heavy's Ulsan shipyard, with completion targeted for the first half of 2029.

SMRs are next-generation nuclear power plants that reduce output compared with conventional large-scale reactors and modularize key equipment, allowing for stable power supply while minimizing carbon emissions.

"This investment aims to secure core competitiveness in power generation engines and SMRs, which are drawing attention as new power sources for the AI era," an HD Hyundai Heavy official said. "We will preemptively respond to surging power demand while taking the lead in the global AI infrastructure market."